The present invention relates to improvements in multiway valves particularly multiway ball type valves.
Multiway ball type valves are commonly known in the prior art, being generally arranged with a housing in which a ball valve member is operably disposed. The ball valve is operated by a handle so as to rotate about a vertical axis of the ball. Porting in the valve housing is aligned in a plane of the vertical axis of the ball, so that when the ball valve member is rotated, a fluid pressure connection between the porting is either established or interrupted. A fluid pressure connection between the porting is made by means of either a bore in the ball member or by means of channels formed in the ball surface. The ball member cooperates with opposing sealing members in the valve housing that surround the porting to establish a fluid pressure seal between the ports when the ball is rotated to interrupt the fluid pressure connection. These sealing members further serve to support the ball valve within the housing. An additional seal generally in the form of an O-ring associated with the handle stem is provided to establish a fluid pressure seal between the interior of the ball valve and atmosphere.
This known multiway ball valve design suffers from the disadvantage of elaborate design measures for mounting and sealing the ball valve within the housing and for sealing and guiding the ball valve handle. In addition to these elaborate design measures making the multiway ball valve device relatively costly, the number of sealing members and particularly the size of these sealing members results in relatively high friction forces and thus high handle operating forces.